On the move in North Rhine-Westphalia: Challenging construction projects in the life sciences industry

Two exciting life sciences construction projects were on the agenda of a press tour organized by the consulting and project management firm Drees & Sommer at the end of February 2018. Visits included Caesar & Loretz and Qiagen in Hilden.

In construction projects, companies in the life sciences sector face a double challenge. They must meet their own high standards while also complying with strict industry regulations. The quality requirements for buildings and facilities are particularly high here: and of course, the construction projects must not disrupt corporate processes. How such complex projects can be successfully managed was the focus of the press trip, with stops at Caesar & Loretz and Qiagen in Hilden, North Rhine-Westphalia, near Düsseldorf.

Caesar & Loretz: Confident Outlook for the Future

The tour started at Caesar & Loretz (Caelo). As one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of high-quality pharmaceutical raw materials in Germany, Caelo supplies pharmacies and hospitals as well as industrial companies. The latter include manufacturers from the pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and medical device sectors. Particularly among industrial companies, there is a noticeable increase in demand for qualified excipients and active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in small and medium quantities, as well as contract manufacturing and packaging services.

The company Caelo has been around for 135 years and has been based in Hilden since 1959, with a production site in Bonn since 1998. With the new buildings, Caelo can continue to meet the demand for raw materials and products in the future. The extensive new construction was driven by capacity expansion as well as increasingly strict GMP requirements. Additionally, the traditional company remains at the forefront with modern production and working environments. The production areas are designed to be flexible, allowing capacities to be increased cost-effectively in the future. A modern energy concept also ensures low operating costs and a pleasant indoor climate. Another central goal for Caelo was to optimize production processes as well as work and production safety.

The life sciences and engineering experts from Drees & Sommer have supported the construction project since late 2013 with consulting and review services. Together with the planning team and the qualification specialist gempex, they reorganized the project process using the 3C management method. The 3C management is an integrated approach to managing new, extension, or renovation projects, linking the phases Construction, Commissioning, and Compliance (quality acceptance). This made the construction process qualification-secure, significantly less risky, and more efficient. As a result, the modern buildings were inaugurated in June 2016.

Qiagen: Sustainability in the Forefront

The "second station" of the press tour impressed with Qiagen’s 11,000-square-meter production and storage complex, including a research and development center. With 4,700 employees and over 35 locations worldwide, Qiagen is the global leader in technologies for extracting valuable molecular insights from biological samples. The European headquarters of the company and the operational headquarters of the corporate holding are located in Hilden. Since 1995, Qiagen has invested hundreds of millions of euros in its Hilden site.

The core of the project completed in 2011 was to combine innovative building technology with sustainable construction methods. To define and demonstrate these criteria, a LEED certification was chosen. The system is among the globally recognized certification schemes for green building. For example, the research buildings are made from low-emission and recycled materials. They also consume 30 percent less energy than legally required, save around 840 tons of carbon dioxide annually, and are powered entirely by hydroelectricity from water sources.

With Europe's first LEED Gold-certified laboratory and production buildings, the global market leader in molecular sample and testing technologies proved itself as a pioneer in sustainability within its industry. Drees & Sommer managed the project and ensured that deadlines, costs, and quality standards were met. Additionally, the company supported the green building certification process according to LEED, providing the necessary consulting services and documentation with its own experts, including building simulations to analyze energy costs and overseeing the commissioning process. This enabled the achievement of the client’s targeted Gold standard.